Tappet adjusting tool



M y 5, 1953 R. E. LEE

TAPPET ADJUSTING TOOL Filed Sept. 26, 1950 v zzvmvroa.

ROBERT E. L E

BYMMW I A TORNE Y FIG. 3

Patented May 5, 1953 d tii'l zht UNITED stares earner optics.

1 Claim.

This invention relates to screw-drivers and more particularly to one intended for adjusting the valve tappets of internal combustion engines and the like.

In the prior art, a screw-driver has been developed and used with a slidable sleeve reciprocable over its screw-driving bit. The purpose of the sleeve is to retain the head of the screw while being actuated by the screw-driver so the bit will not slide out of the slot in the head of the screw. Then when the screw is tightened in place and the operator removes the downward pressure on the screwdriver, the sleeve is retracted on the shank of the tool and exposes the bit, so it can be detached from the screw head. This type of tool serves the purpose for which it is principally intended, namely to hold and tighten wood screws, but when used for the adjustment or tappet screws on an internal combustion engine and the like, particularly while the engine is running and the tappet screws are rapidly moving up and down, it is dangerous and unsatisfactory. It will slip off because the slidable sleeve cannot hold on the head of the screw designed to hold the tappet adjustment in position, because the jarring will jolt the screwdriver and movable sleeve loose. This invention is designed to avoid this difficulty by reason of the use of a rigid sleeve mounted on the tool shank and completely enclosing the sides of the bit. The bit not only fits in the slot of the screw, but is held by the periphery of the adjusting screw in a definite position thereon. The sleeve is marked so as to indicate visually how much adjustment is made by the device when it is turned.

The main object of the invention is to provide a new and improved tappet adjuster that will avoid some of the disadvantages and limitations of the previously used implements of this nature.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved tappet adjuster that will stay securely in place on the adjusting screw or the tappet while it is being employed in a normal manner.

A further object of the invention is to provide a new and improved tappet adjuster that will enable the user to note the amount of adjustment made by visual inspection.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a new and improved tappet adjuster that will be simple in design, effective in operation and economical to manufacture and use.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent as the invention is more fully described.

For a clearer understanding of the invention,

2 reference is made to the accompanying drawings, wherein a particular form of the invention is illustrated and explained in detail in the following specification, while the claim emphasizes the scope of the invention.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of a tappet adjuster embodying this invention, and shown applied to a tappet mechanism of an internal combustion engine;

Figure 2, is an end view of Figure l, and

Figure 3, is a detail in perspective of the sleeve and bit used in this embodiment.

Similar parts are designated by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings.

The drawings illustrate a tappet adjuster for an internal combustion engine. It is made like a screwdriver including a straight and fluted handle Ill, attached to a shank i i, the end of which is formed with a straight sided chisel pointed bit 52. The bit it is intended to lit in the slot it of an adjusting screw i iof a conventional tappet mechanism I5, the details of which are well known and will not be detailed further herein, except in regard to those parts that are concerned in the operation of this invention. The screw it is locked in place on the mechanism l5 by a nut-lock it after adjustment. A cylindrical sleeve ll is permanently secured on the shank H by a rivet l8 and extends over the bit if? so both of their free ends will be flush or in line with one another. The inside diameter of the sleeve is large enough to permit it to encompass the head 2b of the adjusting screw and be guided thereby. Exteriorly, an indicating mark 2! is provided on the lower end portion of the sleeve parallel to the axis of the shank and aligned with the bit to show the position of the bit during its rotation in use, with respect to its first position before the adjustment was made. in this way the user can keep track of how much adjustment he has made during its use, at any particular time.

The outline in Figure 1, shows how the adjuster is applied, and how it registers with the adjusting screw it. It canbe seen that the head it of the screw it is within the cylinder 01- sleeve ill and is held thereby, sothe tool will not normally slip off. As the tappet mechanism l5 rides up and down, and the tool and hand of the operator follow with it, the adjustment may be made without difficulty. When the work is done by the tool, the operator simply lifts the sleeve and bit off the adjusting screw head.

While but one general form of the invention is shown in the drawings and described in the and come within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

In a tool of the class described for adjusting a valve tappet provided with a smooth free end and with a transverse slot at said-end, a screw driver having a straight handle, a solid shank secured to, aligned with and extending from one end of the handle, said shank terminating in an integral, straight sided chisel pointed bit, a. cylindrical sleeve, means for securing said sleeveto the shank 1 at a point adjacent to but spaced from the end of the bit, said sleeve being col-extensive with said bit so that the free ends of the sleeve and of the bit lie in the sameplane, said screw driver 4 and sleeve operating as a unit, the internal diameter of the sleeve being of a size to engage and be guided by the smooth free end of the valve tappet while the bit engages the aforesaid slot,

5 both the bit and the sleeve rotating together when the handle of the screw driver is rotated, and an indicating mark parallel to the axis of the shank and in alignment with the bit.

10 ROBERT E. LEE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Bohlman Nov. 1, 1932 

